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Fact check

Evidence

# Ask what the proof shows.

A claim can sound precise while answering the wrong question. Ask what was studied, in whom and whether it matches the treatment being offered.

Question to carry

Ask which product was studied.

## Terms to start with

FDA means Food and Drug Administration, the US body that reviews medicines.

Evidence is the information used to support a claim. A clinical trial is a study of a treatment in people.

A clinician is a health professional who reviews your concern and talks through care with you.

Compounding is the preparation of a medicine to order by a pharmacist or doctor.

An FDA-registered medicine-making site can also prepare batches, often for clinics and hospitals.

## A closer look at the words

A finding is what a study observed. A result claim is what an advert says. Ask for the finding that supports the particular claim.

Read the offer

## Match the proof to the product

As of September 2026, FDA describes as false or misleading a claim that studies in people prove the same results from a medicine made to order and an approved medicine. [FDA on claims about compounded products](https://www.fda.gov/drugs/human-drug-compounding/fda-telehealth-companies-what-know-when-promoting-compounded-drugs)

This warning concerns what the seller claims to have proved. It does not tell you what result you would get. Ask for evidence about the exact medicine being offered.

Ask whether the cited study used the finished product, the same ingredient, or something else. Ask whether the claim concerns your intended use. A link to a study is the start of that check.

If you cannot tell what a study actually tested, bring it to the clinician. Request the finding in plain words and the part that remains uncertain.

Ask which product was studied.

Ask which problem and which people the study concerned.

Look more closely

## Treat a gap as a gap

BPC-157 is one peptide named in FDA’s safety concerns. As of September 2026, FDA has too little information from use in people to know whether BPC-157 would harm them. [FDA’s account of missing human information](https://www.fda.gov/drugs/human-drug-compounding/certain-bulk-drug-substances-use-compounding-may-present-significant-safety-risks)

The recorded information does not tell us what benefit to expect or which form a seller would offer. Ask: “What problem do you claim this helps, and would it be a shot, tablet or something else?” Then ask what studies in people support that exact use and form.

Ask what human evidence supports the proposed use.

Ask what remains unknown.

Carry this forward

## Keep promises separate from findings

The FTC says no government agency approves health adverts before they appear. [The FTC on health claims](https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0167-miracle-health-claims)

The FTC is the Federal Trade Commission, which deals with consumer protection. A polished advert is still an advert. Ask for the study behind a result claim rather than relying on its presentation.

Write down the answer you receive. If the reply changes the product or the goal, bring the conversation back to the treatment actually proposed for you.

Request the source behind a result claim.

Ask how the evidence changes the care decision.

Keep in mind

## The chapter recap

Useful evidence answers a question about the treatment being offered. Record what it shows and what it leaves open.

[Check the source itself](/source-check/)

These pages help you weigh care; this guide runs no clinic and sells no medicine.

[Text version](/fact-check/index.md)